Anything, Anytime, Anywhere
by Kariana Kusanagi
Summary: KuramaOC Before the last round of the Dark Tournament, Karasu wants to hurt Kurama badly... through a girl he cares about. R&R (finally complete.. or is it?)
1. Meeting in a Dark Hallway

Meeting in a Dark Hallway

By:  Cece Williams

((Disclaimer:  I don't own "YYH" and I don't intend to.))

Yusuke:  If she did, though, she'd have to make Kurama less queer.

Kurama:  (crosses his arms) You're hardly the standard for wild outbursts.

Cece:  Anywho, this is my first one with an OC for this anime.  I only own Andrea, so please R&R.

Kurama:  Everyone, please keep reading and review at the end.

Cece:  Uh, Kurama, I just said that.

Kurama:  Oops.

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Andrea Stone, one of the Spirit Detectives that Koenma, the prince of the Underworld, trained, walked down the hallway, her blue eyes looking out in front of her.  Her long reddish-brown hair was flowing behind her until she stopped and felt her chest, where her heart was pounding.  "Why am I getting this weird feeling?" she asked to herself as she heard a noise from behind her.  She took out one of her Spirit Arrows, placed it in her bow, and pulled it back as far as it would go as she turned around.

A familiar silhouette appeared in front of her.  His long mane of red hair and his emerald green eyes weren't that hard for her to recognize whom it was.  Kurama stepped out from behind her, his arms up in acute surrender.  "It's only me," he told her in his usual calm voice.  "Don't shoot."

Andrea's arm muscles began to calm down as she put away her Spirit Weapon and looked at him.  Her heart, however, was still going crazy.  "Damn, Kurama," she said, one of her hands on her hip, the other one still holding the bow.  "You scared me."

Andrea knew that Kurama was a good guy and that he was trust-worthy.  Part of the reason why she liked going on missions with him was because she liked the way he fought, calculating but yet graceful at the same time.  The other reason was easier to see; they were good friends and classmates.

"You know," she continued, looking into his emerald colored eyes.  "You could give someone a heart attack by doing that."

Kurama smiled, letting his arms go back to his sides and into his pockets casually.  He really didn't mean to scare her, but on the other hand, he was glad she was prepared in case it wasn't him.  His green eyes looked at her apologetically.  "Sorry, I'll try not to do that again," he answered her.

"Don't worry about it; just give me a warning next time," Andrea replied back to him with a wink.  She blinked her blue eyes and looked back in the direction, where she heard voices.  "Something's down that hallway."

As he watched Andrea take a step into that direction, Kurama stayed put, looking at her concernedly.  He knew about her being overconfident, and what that could cost her.  "Be wary, Andrea," he said to her calmly.

She looked back at Kurama and nodded.  "Hmm," she said, looking back in the direction she was just at.  "Kurama, something's up; I think someone's headed our way."

Kurama took a step to match where Andrea was.  "Yes, it would seem so," he answered her, keeping his eyes in front of them.  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Andrea grab a Spirit Arrow and put it on the bow again.  He loved how she was trying to put on a brave face while on the inside she was probably scared as hell.  "Just stay next to me, all right?"

Andrea nodded, her eyes never leaving the dark hallway in front of them.  "Heh, so you felt that, too, huh?" she asked him.  When he didn't answer, she added, "I had a hunch someone was here."

From what Kurama could see, Andrea had been staring into the darkened abyss for about three minutes.  He didn't want to disturb her concentration, so he kept silent, all the while keeping his eyes on the abyss as well.

Finally, Andrea looked at Kurama, who seemed to feel her eyes on him.  "It's Karasu," she answered him in a whisper.

"My, my, aren't we observant?" Karasu appeared right in front of them.

Andrea simply looked at the figure in black, her blue eyes fixed in a steely glare.  The expression on her face was one that Kurama didn't like that well.  "What do you want, Karasu?" she asked him, her voice edged with sharp steel.

Karasu returned the steely glare what she had given him with one of his own.  "What business is that of yours, little girl?" he asked her back.

Andrea's main response was her raising her bow and Spirit Arrow up at his head.  "I'm making it my business," she said, her voice turning into a growl.  "You have a problem with that?"

Karasu's eyes darkened at the tone of her voice.  Normal girls in her position would have been screaming right about now, but she was literally defying him.  "I might," he growled, walking over to her.

Before she could do anything else, Kurama had stepped in front of her.  This surprised her; why was he in front of her?  It didn't make much sense.  "Kurama, what are you doing?" she asked him from behind him.

Kurama looked behind him and looked at her from the corner of his eye.  "I know what I'm doing, Andrea; believe me," he answered her.

She nodded, putting away her Spirit Arrow and her bow.  She knew better than to go against Kurama's words of obvious wisdom.  She saw him in battle and she knew all too well what would probably happen.  Still, she couldn't help but be half worried about him… okay, make that 75% worried about him.  _What am I thinking?_ she thought.  _I'm _2,000% _worried about Kurama right now_.

"Seems as though you're protecting the girl, Kurama," Karasu said, walking nearer to them.  "I wonder why you're protecting her."

Kurama's emerald eyes darkened, unnatural for a calm person like himself.  "Whatever the reason, it is none of your business," he growled slightly.

Andrea brought her blue eyes up at Kurama from behind him.  "You sure you know what you're doing, Kurama?" she asked him.  The look in her eyes showed that she was scared of what Kurama was thinking rather than what Karasu was planning.  "Because, sweetie, I don't."

Kurama leaned his head back and whispered in her ear, "Don't worry; I won't try anything foolish."

Her voice acted the same way her eyes looked at the moment.  "Foolish?" she asked him, blinking.  "You mean, like, what you're doing right now?  I mean, what does he want?"

"Who's to say?"

Her eyes grew wide upon hearing that.  Of course, Karasu wanted to fight Kurama, but the final round of the tournament wasn't until the next day.  And if he _did_ want to fight him, why would he be stupid enough to fight him in front of her?  Andrea brought her voice back, saying, "That coming out of your mouth is really starting to scare me."  She looked from behind Kurama's shoulder.  "Not as much as Mr. MiB over there, though."

Kurama smiled faintly, seeing that she was trying to make a joke even though it was a serious situation.  "Fear is good in some aspects," he said to her.  "But not to worry; I get the distinct feeling that if Karasu was going to try something, he would have done it already."

Her eyes narrowed as far as they would go, since she was a little upset that she could have just capped the guy and be done with it.  She sighed softly.  "Okay, I'll leave you to talk to the guy, since he wanted to meet us here," she answered him.

Kurama gripped her chin lightly in his hand and released it as soon as he did.  He straightened to his full height and looked straight back at Karasu.  "What do you want?" he asked him.

From behind him, Andrea let out a little growl; she was getting another weird feeling; this time that something was going to happen to him.

Karasu smirked and waved his hand nonchalantly.  "I only wanted to be near you seeing as how tomorrow we will not be able to," he answered.

"The only one who's gonna be near him is gonna be me," Andrea growled under her breath from behind the redhead.

Kurama's mouth twitched and his emerald colored eyes glinted with a dark spark that if Andrea had seen, she would have lost her breathing.  "Sorry; I have no intention of getting close to the likes of you," he answered calmly.

Andrea, on the other hand, heard how Kurama's facial expressions had changed.  ~He sounds kinda pissed, ~ she thought to herself.  Hearing his last comment, she smiled from behind him.  ~Mmm, good comeback, ~ she added.

Karasu laughed darkly.  "Yes, it's so obvious," he said, his voice turning dark and menacing.  "Perhaps, though, I should get rid of that pretty girl behind you, hmm?"

Hearing the threat against her own life made her want to jump over the redheaded fox demon and choke the living hell out of him.  Still, although she was tempted to do so, Kurama said he was going to handle it and for her to stay behind him.  She grabbed onto the back of Kurama's outfit, her blue eyes with a bit of a murderous look in them.  Even for her, they weren't the type of eyes she should be using in this predicament.

Kurama backed up and placed a protective hand upon Andrea's waist, keeping her behind him.  His emerald green eyes glinted with a dangerous look.  "You can sure go ahead and try."

Andrea's blue eyes lost the murderous glare and took a more scared and shocked look.  What was he thinking?  "Kurama, are you nuts?" she whispered into his ear, her frightened voice matching her scared eyes.

Inwardly, Kurama cringed but he didn't back down.  He knew Karasu was strong, but they were equal in strength and in using their heads … literally.

Karasu laughed and backed off from Kurama and Andrea.  "Don't worry, Kurama, I will take care of you and the girl in time," he answered.  "No need to rush these things."  He turned to walk away, waving as he did so.

Andrea could feel her heart racing inside of her chest.  She took a couple of deep breaths to try and calm down, but she couldn't help but feel the least bit scared after what she had just heard.  ~He's going to kill Kurama and me, ~ she thought, her heart racing.

Kurama watched Karasu until he disappeared into the darkness.  He then turned around and grasped Andrea's shoulders lightly as to not scare her.  "Are you all right?" he asked her.

Taking another couple of deep breaths, she looked up at him.  "What does he want with you?" she asked him back, the fear in her voice remaining.  Her heart kept racing for another minute or so.

Kurama shook his head.  "I'm not sure, but I get the feeling we'll find out before long," he answered her.  He then did something that surprised even him; he pulled her tighter in his embrace.  "No more worries for me, though, hmm?"

The embrace surprised her at first, but she felt better knowing it was Kurama and no one else.  She leaned her head against him, the frightened tears falling from her eyes.  Her body shook due to her sobbing.  "I can't help it; what if he tries to kill you, and…" She couldn't finish her sentence.

"He will no doubt try to do so," Kurama muttered his answer, still holding Andrea tightly against him.  "But he will not succeed, for my will to survive is strong."

She wrapped her arms around him as tightly as she could, a move that she wasn't even certain if she was really doing it on her own, or if her emotions had taken over.  "I don't know what'll happen if he did…" She looked away from him, the tears falling from her eyes double time.

"He won't, but if by some miracle he does, you will go on, Andrea," he answered.  "You will live and know that I tried my hardest to survive for your sake alone."

Upon hearing his answer, she buried her face into his chest and cried; her arms wrapped tightly around him.  "I don't think I could, Kurama," she answered him, looking up into his eyes, the tears sliding down her cheeks.

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((What could Andrea possibly be thinking?  How will Kurama react to her last statement, if he could respond at all?  Find out in the next chapter!))

Yusuke:  Man, where am I in this thing?

Cece:  Later on, I promise, Yusuke.

Kurama:  Good plots take time; since Cece is an authoress, she knows that all too well.

Hiei:  Might as well say it in Kuwabara's language.

Cece:  Good things come to those who wait.

Kurama:  Anyway, read and review here.

Cece:  It'll probably take a while, but I'm sure my friend and I are going to help out a lot here.

Yusuke:  And PLEASE put me in there!

Kurama:  (sweatdrops) And I thought Cece was bad on the chocolate.

Cece:  (looks at Kurama angrily) What was that, Suiichi Minamino?!

Kurama:  (cringes) Nothing.

Yusuke:  (in singsong) Ooh, Kurama got busted!

Cece:  (in singsong) I'll never tell.

Hiei:  Any reviews are good as far as Cece's concerned.  (looks around) And PLEASE bring chocolate!


	2. The Confession

The Confession

By:  Cece Williams

((Disclaimer:  I don't own YYH and I don't intend to.))

Yusuke:  Man, I had better be in this fanfic somewhere.

Cece:  (me) (boredly) Yeah, yeah.  I know, Yusuke.

Kuwabara:  Geez!  What happened to Cece?

Kurama:  (shakes his head) No one gave her any chocolate today.  I think she's also a little mad at me.

Cece:  (looks at Kurama evilly) A little?

Kurama:  Okay, stark raving mad at me.

Hiei:  Finally, she's mad at someone other than the Detective and the buffoon.

Cece:  Watch it, Hiei!

Yusuke:  Uh, okay.  This is part two of her little thing she's got going on here.

Kurama:  R&R at the end, please.  (gives Cece an Almond Joy)

Cece:  Aww, Kurama!  (hugs him tightly, instantly happy again) Thank you!

Kurama:  (chokes) Okay, now start the chapter and let go of my neck.

Cece:  Okay!!  (lets Kurama go, making Kurama sigh in relief)

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Upon hearing his response, the tears slid down Andrea's cheeks as she grabbed the front of Kurama's outfit in two shaking and clenching hands.  "I don't think I can do that, Kurama," she said to him.

Kurama smiled and smoothed her cheek with the gentlest of touches.  "Hopefully, it won't come down to you having to do anything of the sort, Andrea," he answered her.

She squinted her blue eyes shut, uncertain of, well, everything.  "I can't do that to you," she said.  Almost suddenly, she pulled her face into his shoulder.  "I can't let that Karasu do anything to you.  I know I'm sounding crazy, but I've seen too many people die in front of me, and…" She took a shaky breath, ready to continue her speech.

But what interrupted her was when Kurama shook his head and tilted her chin up so that their eyes met.  "You don't have to worry, Andrea," he said to her.  "I have no intention of letting Karasu do anything to me."

Andrea held the bridge of her nose with her hand as she lowered her head.  "It's kind of hard to understand, you know?" she replied back to him.  "Why I'm acting this way, and why I'm literally shaking like a leaf."  She swallowed, taking a deep breath as she looked back up at him, her hands shaking.  "Every person who ever got near me died; my parents, my first set of adoptive parents, most of my friends… and now I feel like I'm putting you through all of this."

 "Andrea…" Kurama gathered her shaking hands in his own.  "You're not putting me through anything that I myself do not wish to be put through."

She looked down again, once again squinting her blue eyes shut.  Her legs felt like jelly, although she couldn't figure the reason out.  Her voice sounded like sandpaper on wood.  "Are you sure about that?" she asked him.  "Losing the first person I've trusted will hurt me."  She couldn't look up at him even if her eyes were open to begin with.

Kurama tilted his head and smiled gently at her.  "Have a little faith in me, Andrea; I won't lose," he said to her, tilting her chin up again.  "You and I have too much to look forward to."

Her voice seemed to recover a little.  "I know that, but at what cost?" she asked him.  She opened her eyes, which caused all of the held-in tears to fall down her cheeks.  Her eyes, although they were still tearing, looked confused at Kurama's last statement to her.  "Much to look forward to?" she repeated, blinking her eyes, sending another couple of tears to fall.

Kurama's cheeks tinged with an embarrassed shade of pink, but he just as soon recovered.  He turned his face away so to casually clear his throat.

Andrea dried her eyes with her hand, lightly giggling.  "Wow, you're subtle, and you're blushing," she said, her voice almost back to normal.  "Wait till I tell the rest of the team about this."  She shook her head, her face growing a little pink herself.  "Although they'll never believe me."

Kurama's cheeks, on the other hand, turned an even darker shade of pink.  It took him several minutes before the color faded and he was able to turn and face Andrea again, smiling wryly.  "Oh, I don't know about that," he said, laughing lightly.

"What do you mean, 'Oh, I don't know about that'?" she asked him, her blue eyes looking a little confused.  She looked up at him again and placed one hand on the side of his face.  "Are you sure you're not running a fever?"

Kurama caught her hand and leaned forward a little.  "Quite sure," he answered her.

Her voice got caught in her throat.  "Uh, what are you doing?" she asked.  She tried to look calm, but what was she supposed to do?  She blinked a few times to figure out what he was doing.

Kurama bowed his head and dropped his hand away from her face.  "It's nothing; I'm sorry," he answered her, stepping back with his head still lowered and turned away.  "We should get back to our room," he added, a hint of a repressed sadness in his voice.

"Yeah, uh, okay," she answered him, blinking another three times.  ~Wonder what's on his mind, ~ she thought to herself.  She lowered her head as well.  ~Maybe it was something I did or said to him. ~  As she was walking, she didn't notice the wall in front of her until she ran into it.  She rubbed the top of her head.  "Ow."

Kurama smiled faintly as he turned to help her.  "Be careful now," he said.  He helped steady her.  "You all right?"

Andrea looked like she was seeing double as she looked up at Kurama.  "Uh, Kurama?" she asked.  "Why are there two of you?"

Kurama laughed and held her tightly at his side.  "Come on, back to the room," he said, leading a knocked silly Andrea with him.

She kept a hand to her head.  "Okay, note to self:  Never walk into a wall without looking up first… wait, that didn't make sense," she said.

Kurama merely laughed to himself as he walked her back up to their conjoined hotel rooms.

~Wait a minute, Miss I Walked Into A Wall Like An Idiot, ~ she thought to herself. ~Why did you have to be that dumb enough to do that?! ~  She looked up at him, her heart literally doing somersaults.  Aloud, she asked, "Uh, Kurama?  Is something wrong?"  She blinked her eyes, wondering if her prediction was right.

Kurama's face showed no emotion whatsoever as he shook his head at her.  "Nothing you need to concern yourself over, Andrea," he answered.  He then looked away and opened the door to her room.  "Here we are."

 "Okay… thanks a lot," she answered, walking into her room and sitting down in a chair.  She held her head, causing her long reddish-brown hair to fall at its sides.  ~Okay, you might as well tell him what's on your mind, ~ she thought to herself.  Looking up at him, she said aloud, "Uh, Kurama?"

 Kurama was about to turn away from the room when he heard her voice.  He stopped and looked back at her.  "Hmm, yes, what is it, Andrea?" he asked her.

"Uh, have you ever felt like everything was in a hurricane?" Andrea asked him.  "You know, like a battle between what your mind and your heart want?"

Kurama's hold on Andrea's doorknob tightened.  He bowed his head, allowing his long red bangs to fall over his emerald eyes.  "Yes," he answered simply.

Her blue eyes looked up at him, shocked.  "Well, that's what's been wrong with me… even before our encounter with Karasu," she answered him, leaning on the arm of the chair on her elbow, sighing.  ~Well, here goes nothing, ~ she thought to herself.

Unsure of what to say or do, he remained mute and immobile.

Andrea swallowed, trying to gather her thoughts together.  "Well, I guess I should go first," she started her thoughts outwardly.  "Last night, I had a nightmare, and it was probably the worst one I've ever had. You were fighting Karasu, and when he hit you, I screamed right along with you."  She swallowed again to keep her throat from getting dry.  "I feel like we're connected… like maybe we're more than just friends, you know?"

"More than friends?  How do you mean?" Kurama inquired inquisitively.

"Well…" She bit her bottom lip a little too hard; mentally she screamed, but physically, she took it.  "Doesn't it seem kind of odd?  I mean, I wasn't even attacked, but yet I felt the same pain you did in that nightmare."

Kurama released his hold on Andrea's doorknob and stepped back into her room, but he went no further than that.  He remained thoughtful.

As she opened her mouth again, she brought her hand up to her mouth, almost forgetting about her bottom lip.  "I know it's going to sound weird, coming from me," she continued, taking a deep breath.  "But I think I'm … well, falling… uh…" Her heart started pounding all over again.  "For you."  After she finished talking, she brought her hands to her face, half embarrassed, half scared of what he was going to say.  ~Oh, man, ~ she thought to herself, her hands still on her face.  ~I just told him what I felt, and I'm going crazy…~

Kurama found it hard to respond to Andrea, seeing as how he himself barely understood the close connection between them.

Andrea felt her heart beat faster than Hiei when he fought Seiryu.  One of her hands went to her heart, revealing a more scared look on her face.  The silence between them was scaring her even more than that.

Kurama lifted his head in time to see Andrea's hand cover her heart.  She had a scared look about her.  Hating to see her in such a way, he crossed the room and hugged her.  "I'm sure what connects us, or if whether or not we're meant to be more than friends," he finally answered her.  "But you can bet that we're going to discover the answer our lives riddle soon."

She felt his arms around her; she wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning her head on his shoulder.  Her heart was still beating wildly inside of her.  "I just hope it's not going to be a double funeral, you know," she said.

Kurama pursed his lips together and nodded.

Hearing what she had just said, she held him a little tighter, sniffling back tears.  ~Come on, kiddo; you've cried enough to make a waterfall, ~ she scolded herself.

Kurama sighed and dropped his head so that it fell forward against her shoulder.

"What I just told you, about me falling for you, I meant that," she said.  Trying to smile and joke a little, she added, "But I never thought I'd be falling against you, though."

Kurama managed a laugh, while Andrea laughed along with him, thinking all the while that she had made a bad pun.

"Cute," he finally managed to say.  He lifted his head and then rested it against hers.

"Well, now I'm finally seeing another side of you," she said, smiling, although she was now blushing a shade of red that would make his hair jealous.

Kurama pinched her nose playfully and grinned.  "Careful now, lest that blush of yours makes this red hair of mine jealous."

"I think it already has," she answered him, laughing while Kurama laughed with her.  When she smiled, her blush accidentally became a little darker.  "Are you jealous yet?" she asked him.

"A little," Kurama admitted.  "But not to worry; it'll get over it."

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((Will they finally understand these weird feelings about each other?  And what about Karasu; will he go after one or both in the tournament or before?  Find out in the next part!))

Cece:  Well, that's part two.

Yusuke:  Man, I'm not in it.

Cece:  Don't worry; you'll be in it… I promise.

Kurama:  I just hope it won't get too romantic.

Cece:  Well, love is in the air, Kurama.

(Kurama sweatdrops)

Hiei:  Just read and review.  We need some reviews.

Cece:  It'll take a while, but I'll get it finished… eventually.

Kurama:  Okay.  See all of you people later.


	3. What You Really Feel

What You Really Feel

By:  Cece Williams

((Disclaimer:  Well, since I don't own anything YYH, that's it.))

Cece:  Wow!  (happily takes the Almond Joy) Thank you!

Kurama:  Oh, dear.

Yusuke:  Well, it can't be that bad.

(All four guys are in tutus)

Yusuke:  Okay, this is bad.

Hiei, Kuwabara and Kurama:  DOY!!!

Cece:  Sorry… I'm just happy.

Kurama:  (sweatdrops) Maybe a little much, perhaps?

Kuwabara:  Could someone get me out of this thing before I get a wedgie?

Cece:  Let me think on that while I'm writing.

Kurama:  (pleading look in his eyes) Please, Cece?  I promise I'll stop Kuwabara from killing you.

Cece:  Okay!

(All four guys are back in their normal clothes again)

Kurama:  Thank you.  R&R please.  Flashbacks will be shown like this:  ~_flashback_~

Yusuke:  Come on!  (starts praying) Please let me be in this chapter!

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Kuwabara walked down the hall, a bag of potato chips in his hand.  He stopped in mid-munch to hear voices… coming from Andrea's hotel room.  He wasn't worried, though, since they were voices that he recognized.  He stepped up to the door and peered in, smiling at what he saw; Kurama was holding Andrea… maybe a little too close.  He held a hand to his mouth to keep from laughing.  "Uh, you guys?" he said.  "You left the door open."

Andrea heard the voice and buried her head in Kurama's shoulder, her face turning a deep shade of red, almost the color of Kurama's hair.  "I think you might want to turn around and look at the door," she said, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

Kurama held onto Andrea a little tighter to him and bowed his head, letting his long red bangs brush against their faces.  "Yes, well, I suppose I didn't close it enough when I came in," he answered her.  He smiled to himself.  "Well, no matter; we're not doing anything wrong, anyway."

"Yeah, I know that, but you know how Kuwabara is," Andrea said, resting her head on his shoulder.  "The whole 'power of love' thing."  She almost froze, hearing herself say that.  "Wait a minute; you don't think that he thinks that we…" She left the last part unsaid because even she didn't know about it much as well.

 Kurama shook his head, a smile still on his face.  "Who knows?" he whispered in her ear.  "Perhaps we should ask him, hmm?"

Andrea smiled, trying to keep it in.  "I have a weird feeling what he's gonna say," she answered.

"Ah, it's the power of love," Kuwabara said from the door, smiling goofily.  "I was kind of wondering when that'd happen."

Andrea smacked a hand to her forehead, shaking her head, her blue eyes looking to the floor.  "Oh, great," she said.  "Now I suppose he's going to tell the whole team what's going on, huh?"

Kurama lowered his head, but at the same time pressing a balled-up fist to his mouth to stifle his laughter.

"And what is so funny?" Andrea asked him.  Sighing, she stood to her feet.  "Maybe I'm reading too much into this; I'm going to get some air."

Kurama instantly composed himself as he stood up as well.  "Andrea, we should talk more later, hmm?" he asked her.

"Yeah, I should feel better after I get some air," she answered, looking at Kurama once more before leaving the room and walking past Kuwabara, who was still standing there.

Kuwabara peeked into Andrea's room again at Kurama.  "Ooh, fight with the girlfriend?" he asked him teasingly.

Kurama simply smiled as he stuck his hands in his pockets and walked past Kuwabara to his hotel room next door.  Before he stepped in, he bowed his head.  "You're free to join me, if you wish," he said.

"Yeah, no problem…" Kuwabara answered, keeping his laughing to a minimum.

Meanwhile, Andrea walked outside and jumped on a tree branch, sitting down as different thoughts began to swim inside her mind from the day.

~_Start of 1st flashback_~

_Finally, Andrea looked at Kurama, who seemed to feel her eyes on him.  "It's Karasu," she answered him in a whisper._

_"My, my, aren't we observant?" Karasu appeared right in front of them._

_Andrea simply looked at the figure in black, her blue eyes fixed in a steely glare.  The expression on her face was one that Kurama didn't like that well.  "What do you want, Karasu?" she asked him, her voice edged with sharp steel._

_Karasu returned the steely glare what she had given him with one of his own.  "What business is that of yours, little girl?" he asked her back._

_Andrea's main response was her raising her bow and Spirit Arrow up at his head.  "I'm making it my business," she said, her voice turning into a growl.  "You have a problem with that?"_

_Karasu's eyes darkened at the tone of her voice.  Normal girls in her position would have been screaming right about now, but she was literally defying him.  "I might," he growled, walking over to her._

_Before she could do anything else, Kurama had stepped in front of her.  This surprised her; why was he in front of her?  It didn't make much sense.  "Kurama, what are you doing?" she asked him from behind him._

_Kurama looked behind him and looked at her from the corner of his eye.  "I know what I'm doing, Andrea; believe me," he answered her._

_She nodded, putting away her Spirit Arrow and her bow.  She knew better than to go against Kurama's words of obvious wisdom.  She saw him in battle and she knew all too well what would probably happen.  Still, she couldn't help but be half worried about him… okay, make that 75% worried about him.  _What am I thinking?_ she thought.  _I'm 2,000% worried about Kurama right now.__

"Seems as though you're protecting the girl, Kurama," Karasu said, walking nearer to them.  "I wonder why you're protecting her."

_Kurama's emerald eyes darkened, unnatural for a calm person like himself.  "Whatever the reason, it is none of your business," he growled slightly._

~_End of 1st flashback_~

Her mind took her to another moment… one that most girls would only dream of…

~_Start of 2nd flashback_~

_Karasu smirked and waved his hand nonchalantly.  "I only wanted to be near you seeing as how tomorrow we will not be able to," he answered._

_"The only one who's gonna be near him is gonna be me," Andrea growled under her breath from behind the redhead._

_Kurama's mouth twitched and his emerald colored eyes glinted with a dark spark that if Andrea had seen, she would have lost her breathing.  "Sorry; I have no intention of getting close to the likes of you," he answered calmly._

_Andrea, on the other hand, heard how Kurama's facial expressions had changed.  ~_He sounds kinda pissed_, ~ she thought to herself.  Hearing his last comment, she smiled from behind him.  ~_Mmm, good comeback_, ~ she added._

Karasu laughed darkly.  "Yes, it's so obvious," he said, his voice turning dark and menacing.  "Perhaps, though, I should get rid of that pretty girl behind you, hmm?"

Hearing the threat against her own life made her want to jump over the redheaded fox demon and choke the living hell out of him.  Still, although she was tempted to do so, Kurama said he was going to handle it and for her to stay behind him.  She grabbed onto the back of Kurama's outfit, her blue eyes with a bit of a murderous look in them.  Even for her, they weren't the type of eyes she should be using in this predicament.

_Kurama backed up and placed a protective hand upon Andrea's waist, keeping her behind him.  His emerald green eyes glinted with a dangerous look.  "You can sure go ahead and try."_

~_End of 2nd flashback_~

"Why would he protect me?" she asked herself.  Her mind drifted off a third time… this time a moment that shocked her…

~_Start of 3rd flashback_~

Kurama's cheeks, on the other hand, turned an even darker shade of pink.  It took him several minutes before the color faded and he was able to turn and face Andrea again, smiling wryly.  "Oh, I don't know about that," he said, laughing lightly.

_"What do you mean, 'Oh, I don't know about that'?" she asked him, her blue eyes looking a little confused.  She looked up at him again and placed one hand on the side of his face.  "Are you sure you're not running a fever?"_

Kurama caught her hand and leaned forward a little.  "Quite sure," he answered her.

~_End of 3rd flashback_~

"Was Kurama about to…" she asked herself.  She mentally slapped herself as she turned her head in attention.  ~Something's wrong…~ she thought.

Back in Kurama's hotel room, Kuwabara wanted answers.  "So, did you two have a fight?" he asked him.  "I thought you liked her."

"A fight?  No, it was just a minor misunderstanding," Kurama answered as he walked to his closet to change.

"Misunderstanding, huh?" Kuwabara asked, stifling a laugh.  "You were really touchy-feely with Andrea, you know.  For a minute there, I thought you and Andrea were going out together."

"Yes, well, nothing is as it seems, Kuwabara," Kurama answered him.  "At least, not yet, anyway."

"Not yet…" Kuwabara's eyes gave a teasing look at Kurama.  "I had a feeling something was going on."

Kurama only smiled as he took a quick shower and dressed down to a simple pair of blue jeans and a red T-shirt.  When he came out, a towel was wrapped around his shoulders while his long red hair was still wet.

"Going anywhere?" Kuwabara asked him.  "Like, maybe to find Andrea?  She's been gone a while."

Kurama sighed and flopped down uncharacteristically on the couch across from where Kuwabara was.  "Do you think I should go after her?" he asked.

Kuwabara got a chilly feeling.  "Yeah… that might be a good idea," he answered.

Kurama nodded and rose back to his feet.  "Very well; I'm off then," he answered, his hair still dripping wet and a towel still around him as he turned to leave the room.  "You are free to stay here if you like."  With that, he opened the door and left the room.

Kuwabara sighed.  "I just hope he didn't get that weird feeling."

Meanwhile, Andrea stayed in the tree, that is until she felt something fly near her.  She jumped down, landing on her feet, and looked up, seeing a green thingamajig with wings heading towards her.  She ducked out of the way, but the weapon struck her in the small of her back.  This knocked her down, but she couldn't recover in time as she hit the ground on her side.  She looked up at the branch she jumped off of.  Trying to stand up wasn't a problem, but ignoring the pain in her back was a whole other ball game.  She gritted her teeth in pain as she stood back to her feet.

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((Who had attacked Andrea, and will Kurama find her before it's too late?  And is Kuwabara right; could they be more than just friends?  Find out in the next chapter!))

Yusuke:  Man!

Cece:  I know, I know… but don't worry; you're going to get a good part in the next chapter.

Yusuke:  Sweet!  Do I get to beat anyone up?

Cece:  I can't give it away.  It's a secret.

Kurama:  All we need is Hiei in the story, and it's good.

Cece:  Yeah, but he's not the type to tell Kurama that he's in love or not.  I don't think he cares less.

Hiei:  Nice words.

Cece:  Thank you!

Kurama:  Remember to R&R here.


	4. Surprise, Surprise fight

Surprise, Surprise

By:  Cece Williams

((Disclaimer:  I don't own YYH, so don't sue.))

Cece:  Well, someone's happy.

Yusuke:  (grins from ear to ear) I'm in it!  Yahoo!

Kurama:  Well, perhaps this chapter should be starting soon, right?

Cece:  Yep!  R&R.

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Andrea stayed in the tree, that is until she felt something fly near her.  She jumped down, landing on her feet, and looked up, seeing a green thingamajig with wings heading towards her.  She ducked out of the way, but the weapon struck her in the small of her back.  This knocked her down, but she couldn't recover in time as she hit the ground on her side.  She looked up at the branch she jumped off of.  Trying to stand up wasn't a problem, but ignoring the pain in her back was a whole other ball game.  She gritted her teeth in pain as she stood back to her feet.

A tall familiar figure appeared on the branch where Andrea was once on.  His long black hair blew in the chilled morning breeze.  "Peek-a-boo," he said.

Andrea's blue eyes looked angry, as she now knew who it was.  Karasu.  "What do you want?" she asked, holding onto her back.  "You know you don't stand a chance against Kurama."

Karasu said nothing in return, only jumped down from the branch so as to land perfectly on the ground below.  Instead of moving closer to her, though, he stuck his hands in his pockets and simply stared at her.

"What's the matter; cat got your tongue?" Andrea asked, getting out her bow.  She pulled a Spirit Arrow onto it and held it at his head, gritting her teeth from the pain in her back.  "Did anyone ever tell you it's unmanly to attack someone from behind?"

Karasu simply shook his head.  "I pushed you out of a tree, little girl," he answered, his dark voice reaching out to her.  "I'd hardly call that 'attacking' you."

Andrea fired her Spirit Arrow at him, hoping to everything she believed in that it'd hit him.  ~Come on, please hit this freak,~ she thought to herself.

Having already seen the arrow coming at him, Karasu ducked away, but not before the arrow grazed the side of his face.  A trickle of blood ran down his cheek, and behind his mask, he smiled.  "Was that supposed to hurt me?"

Andrea fell to her knees, drained from the arrow she shot.  She put another one on the bow and shot it into the air.  Looking back at him, she smiled through the pain.  "Well, at least I hit you," she answered back.

Musingly, Karasu smiled.  "Yes, I'll give you that one," he said.  "But you can rest assured that it won't happen again."

Meanwhile, Yusuke was walking back to the hotel, tired and weary after his training.  He looked up to see something shooting in the sky.  "That looked like Andrea's arrow," he said to himself.  He turned his head to see Kurama, who evidently saw the arrow as well.  "Did you see that?"

Kurama didn't answer; he only nodded and took off running in the direction from which he had seen the arrow shoot out from.  ~Andrea… she's in danger,~ he thought to himself as he ran.

Yusuke looked on as Kurama ran out of sight.  "Good luck, Kurama," he said into the wind.

Back in the woods, Andrea's breathing was getting ragged from her sudden loss of Spirit Energy.  ~I just hope someone saw that,~ she thought to herself.  ~I don't know how much longer I can take this guy.~ Looking up at him, she growled, "In a way, I wish Kurama would've capped your behind back there."

Karasu in turn shot a small blast into the air, and in doing so, disintegrated her Spirit Arrow on contact.  "Oops, you really needed that, didn't you?" he asked her; his dark eyes glinted.

Andrea's body was shaking due to the two arrows she let fly.  She looked up at him, trying to hide the fact that she was shaking.  "What's it to you?" she growled through the pain, which had started to progress.

Karasu only smiled before closing the distance between them.  "It's a real shame that a beautiful girl like you has to suffer to such a fate," he said, his hand about five feet from her.  But just as he was about to grab her neck, a whip laden with sharp thorns caught his wrist and pulled him back from Andrea.

Andrea fell to the ground face-first; her tired and weakened blue eyes looking at a pair of unfamiliar legs, although the attack was very familiar.  She smiled, although the pain was progressing.  "Kurama… you made it…" she whispered, her tired body lying on the ground.

"I suggest if you wish to keep those hands of yours to keep them to yourself," Kurama replied darkly.  Turning to Andrea, he put away his Rose Whip and helped her up so that she was leaning against him.  "Of course, I made it," he answered her.  Joking lightly, he added, "Don't you know that the hero always makes it in the nick of time?"

"I know that…" Before she could anything further, she screamed in pain, squinting her eyes shut.  She gritted her teeth in pain.

Kurama's demeanor changed when he saw the look of pain on her face.  He pulled his arm from her back to her neck, locking it securely to her face.  It was only a brief moment of glaring harshly at Karasu that he picked Andrea up into his arms gently and began to walk away.

Karasu looked at Kurama, enraged.  "Kurama, get back, get back here and fight me," he said.

Kurama didn't even look behind him.  "Sorry; I have more important matters to tend to before I destroy you," he said, shaking his head.

Andrea's words came out almost like a whisper.  "I thought Karasu destroyed that arrow… how did you find me?" she asked him.

Kurama shook his head; still carrying her tired and injured form.  "He did; but I had already pinpointed the arrow's location long before he destroyed it," he answered her.

Andrea opened her blue eyes for a second and looked down at the ground long enough to know she was being carried.  She laughed slightly, although the pain coursing through her was immense.  "Now, how are you going to explain this to everyone else?" she asked him.

Kurama smiled down at her, allowing a small laugh to escape his lips.  "Hmm, who says we have to explain anything?" he asked her back.

Back at the hotel, Kuwabara had already walked outside, seeing the blast that destroyed Andrea's arrow.  Yusuke and himself stood in an unnatural silence, both suspecting the worst; someone had attacked Andrea and she was probably dead.  He heard some rustling; he looked up and saw Kurama carrying a girl in his arms.  As Kurama got closer, Kuwabara saw that it was Andrea.  "Kurama…" he said.  "Are you practicing carrying Andrea across the threshold?"

Andrea rolled her eyes at Kurama.  "I think we might have to…" she answered Kurama's question.

Yusuke punched Kuwabara upside his head, rolling his brown eyes.  "Stupid…" he muttered under his breath at Kuwabara.  Turning to Kurama, he asked, "What happened to her, Kurama?"

Kurama ignored Kuwabara's comment and turned his attention to Yusuke.  "It was Karasu; he surprised her," he answered.  "He attacked her and I found her like this."

"What?!" Yusuke's voice showed concern and anger for what happened to her, and from the look in his brown eyes, it wasn't a smart idea to tick him off; Andrea and the rest of the team knew that all too well.  "Where's that little…" he growled angrily.

Andrea looked at Yusuke.  "Yusuke, I couldn't beat him… what makes you think you could?" she asked him.

From somewhere far in the corridor, Karasu said, "And you can rest assured they'll be plenty of more surprises where that came from, Kurama."  With that, he gave only Kurama a glance and disappeared into the darkness of the opposite corridor.

Andrea looked at them as Yusuke growled.  "I know…" Tears started to fill her eyes as she turned her head back to Kurama.  "I'm sorry."

While her back was turned, Yusuke looked at a patch of skin at her back that looks bruised when Andrea turned her head.  She looked like she was hit in the back real bad.  "Oh, man," he said, shaking his head, his anger lightly subsiding.

Kurama shook his head at Andrea's apology.  "Don't be sorry, Andrea," he answered her as he started to walk, continuing to carry her.  "It's not your fault; besides, if anyone should be sorry here, it should be me for not finding you sooner."

The tears fell from her eyes, tears of anger and of pain mingled together as if they were one emotion.  "I …should have done something…" she started her defense.

Kurama shook his head again.  "Don't trouble yourself over this anymore, Andrea," he answered her, silencing her.  "For it's not so much your problem as it is mine."  Kurama's emerald eyes narrowed downward, but not before the angry glint in his eyes appeared that his eyes sharpened.  "I will take care of him soon enough."

The look in Kurama's eyes scared her… probably more than Karasu.  "But if I couldn't beat him…" she started.

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((What could Kurama have up his sleeve?  Will Kuwabara ever keep his thoughts to himself?  What plans does Karasu have planned for Andrea and Kurama?  All in the next part!))

Cece:  Man, I didn't know Kurama could look so pissed off.

Yusuke:  You should've seen him in "Flowers of Blood."  That was scary.

Cece:  I did see that… in the dark.

Kurama:  Let me venture a guess; you screamed during the episode?

(Cece nods)

Kuwabara:  Geez, what a wuss.

Yusuke:  Why don't you look at yourself in the mirror?

(Kuwabara and Yusuke start a mouth-off)

Genkai:  Shut up, you two!

Cece:  Thanks.  R&R… while we try to shut them up.


	5. The Realization of the Situation

The Realization of the Situation

By:  Cece Williams

((Disclaimer:  Don't own, don't sue... can't get nothing.))

Cece:  I'm back!  YAY!!!

Kurama:  I see...  sorry for the long wait... there were some problems.

Yusuke:  Okay, let's get on with it, you guys!

Cece:  Agreed.

Kurama:  That's my line.

Cece:  Oops.

            "If I couldn't beat him..." Andrea started to protest to Kurama.

            "Karasu only took you by surprise," Kurama interrupted her, carrying her injured form upstairs to her room, where he unlocked the door.

            After Kurama walked in, Andrea walked in after him, holding her back.  It felt like a thousand knives were digging into her back with one step; her face was contorted with pain.

            "Come here," Kurama said, grabbing her arm above her wrist.  He led her to her bed and sat her down on the soft mattress.  "I need you to lie down on your front."

            "Why?" Andrea asked as she did what she was told.

            Kurama didn't answer her; he only went into the bathroom to find a cold cloth and a first aid kit.  Finding them, he went back into the room, seeing the look of pain upon her innocent face.  Inwardly, he was angry that something like this could happen to her, but he wouldn't show it outwardly.  Instead, he sat down on the bed and patched up the injury she sustained.

            "Kurama?" Andrea asked, looking up at him.  "Something wrong?"

            "Don't worry; I'll take care of you and the girl in due time, he remembered Karasu's words.  Kurama turned his emerald green eyes away from Andrea.  Was this what you meant by 'taking care' of Andrea? he thought to himself.

            "Kurama?"

            Kurama snapped out of his trance and looked back at Andrea, who looked overly concerned about him.

            "Something wrong?"

            Kurama smiled while shaking his head.  "Nothing's wrong, Andrea," he answered.  All of a sudden, he walked to the open window, where his normal calm face turned to a darker, more anger-filled look.  His eyes seemed to narrow at what had taken place, and his ears couldn't pick up Andrea's worried voice calling his name.

            "Kurama?  What's going on?" she asked him, getting off of the bed and looking at him, her blue eyes looking worriedly at the redhead.

            Kurama only looked in front of him.  Seeing a vision of Karasu in the back of his mind, he clenched and unclenched his fists.  "I will take care of him soon enough," he said to himself.

            "Take care of who, Karasu?" Andrea asked, her hand over her rapidly beating heart.

            Kurama recoiled; he didn't want Andrea to hear that.  Still, she was concerned about him, so he nodded his head.  "Yes," he answered simply.

            "You didn't expect to go after Karasu and try to kill him," she replied.  She took one step closer to Kurama.  "It's not your fault this happened to me."

            Kurama shook his head in complete disagreement at her words.  He had already lost one too many people in his life... one too many friends had died, and he would be damned if he lost another.  In a way, losing Andrea would be the end of him.  He would stop Karasu... even if he had to pay his own life to do so.

            "I was the one who decided to go outside," Andrea continued, dropping to her knees.  "If I hadn't gotten myself involved, this wouldn't have happened."

            Once again, Kurama shook his head in disagreement.  He knelt down next to her and held her shoulders gently.  "You mustn't blame yourself, Andrea," he answered her.  He lowered his head, letting his long red bangs cover his eyes.  "Even if you hadn't gotten involved,

Karasu would still have come after you.  All it would take was one glance at the way I acted with you to see that my feelings for you are different than what I feel towards my other friends."

            "I know that..." Andrea answered, but stopped when she heard his last statement.  "How different?"

            Kurama looked up at her, and then looked away.  "I don't know, but it's different," he answered her.

            "Yeah, that I'd have to agree with you on," she answered.  "I was meaning to ask you... what were you looking at outside?"

            "Looking at?" Kurama asked her.  He stood to his feet and looked at the open window again.  "I was just looking at the children playing outside."  He smiled.  "I suppose that should make me jealous as I can't remember a single time when I felt such innocence."

            Andrea agreed, standing to her feet as well.  "Yeah, but they've never felt the pain of losing someone."  Her eyes looked downcast at the floor.

            "Perhaps they can handle the feelings better than we can," Kurama answered her.  He looked back at Andrea, who looked melancholy, and when he saw the look on her face, he frowned.  "What's wrong?"

            "Just thinking of all the people who died..." She cringed on the last word and continued.  "And I wonder... what if I had been there sooner?"

            Kurama held her gently while shaking his head lightly at the same time.  "Don't torture yourself with such 'what if' thoughts, Andrea," he answered.  "What's done is done.  We cannot go back, we can only go forward."

            Andrea bit her lip again.  "I just heard from that big mouth, Kuwabara..." she said. "You'll have to turn back into Youko to beat him, won't you?"

            At those words, Kurama stepped away from Andrea and stared out the open window.  "Yes... it's the only way, I'm afraid," he answered her.

            "Well, I can't stop you," she replied, holding her back again.  The pain had gone, but she'd have to be more careful.  "Someone once told me, 'Sometimes you have to do the things you hate in order to accomplish your goal."

            Kurama leaned his head against his hands and sighed.  "I agree wholeheartedly," he said.

            "My now 'father' told me that, because he knows I don't like killing and seeing the people I care about being killed," she continued.  Andrea faced the wall, tears forming in her eyes.  "And I have this strange feeling something terrible's gonna happen."

            "I know the chances of something bad happening are very high, especially with my going against a strong foe like Karasu," Kurama said, still looking out the window.  "But if your worry is for me, I want you to know something."  He walked over and wrapped his arms around her shoulders lightly.  "I will try to keep myself as alive as I can."

(How will Kurama keep his promise to Andrea?  Will they EVER tell each other their true feelings?  All in the next part!!)

Cece:  That feels great, writing again.

Kurama:  Perhaps you should start on your other ones.

Cece:  Right!  Ja ne!!


	6. Good Times

Good Times

By:  Cece Williams

((Disclaimer:  don't own, can't sue… ha ha ha.))

Yusuke:  Wow!  Cece's back to normal!

Cece:  Yes, I am, Yusuke, and possibly better than ever!

Kurama:  Cece… maybe you should start typing.

Cece:  Okay!  Should warn ya, though, that this story might have spoilers from the Karasu/Kurama fight.

Yusuke:  And that it'll be a little more comical… in a way.

Kurama:  R &R at the end.

(Cece sings "Good Times")

Kurama:  (sweatdrops) Before she eats another three pounds of chocolate!

Andrea flinched to the sudden touch of Kurama's arms around her, feeling the tears fall slowly from her eyes.  "I know I'm just worrying about everything, but I do have a reason to worry, don't I?"

"Of course, but you shouldn't, though.  I'll be fine."

Even though the words reached her ears, Andrea's eyes never left the wall she was facing.  "I know you'll be all right, but how long is this charade going to last?"

"Fifteen minutes," Kurama answered her.  "If I can't beat him within that time limit…" He stopped; he didn't want to worry Andrea more than she was.  "Never mind; fifteen minutes should be more than enough time for me to defeat him."

"Fifteen minutes?" Andrea echoed, not fully believing what he just said.  "I can't even get out of the shower in that time."  She started teasing, hoping to make the situation seem less severe than it was.

Kurama let out a small laugh, turning back to face her.  "Indeed."

This time, Andrea's blue eyes left the wall and looked at Kurama.  "How would you know… unless you timed it," she said, looking at him strangely.

"And how do you know I haven't?" he inquired back at her.

"Well…" she was stumped on that one.  She turned around again, laughing while her face almost turned red.  "I really don't know, do I?"

"Guess not," Kurama answered with a small smile.

Smiling as well, Andrea put one hand on her face.  "Sometimes, I worry about you," she said to him.

"Oh?"  Kurama leaned back against the wall, his arms crossed against his chest.  "Why is that, might I ask?"

She bit her lip, which was a bad habit for her.  "Well, to be blunt, you're fighting a guy who looks like he should model for girl magazines," she answered, smiling a little.  Silently in her head, she was hoping Kurama would laugh to that.

Hearing the comment made Kurama bow his head and chuckle to himself.

"I mean, doesn't he look kind of…" To finish her statement, she raised her hand and shook it, not letting her middle finger move.

Kurama now had trouble keeping the chuckles in; he had to bite down on his thumb to keep from exploding out.

Laughing herself, she finished her statement.  "Don't tell me you haven't thought of Karasu like that, Kurama," she said, shuddering.

Kurama stopped laughing long enough to answer her.  "Of course I have, Andrea; I noticed it right off.  But just hearing it said aloud, I don't know…" He looked away, resuming the chuckling.

"I must be on one of my sugar rushes again," she answered him, holding a hand over her mouth to keep from almost laughing like Kurama.  "But at least it's better than worrying, right?"

Once again, Kurama turned back to face her.  "Most definitely better," he answered her.

"Although I might have a good reason to…"

"You might have one, yes, but let's not dwell on unhappy subjects like that, all right?"

"Okay, now tell me the truth," she said, looking into Kurama's emerald green eyes.  "You didn't take any kind of watch and time how long I was in the shower, did you?"

Kurama turned and walked casually away, whistling innocently the whole time.

"You did…" She looked at Kurama, her face turning red again as she smiled.  "If you live through this fight, I'm going to get you."

Kurama stopped halfway, lowered his head and smiled.  "You can sure go ahead and try, Andrea," he answered.

"Oh, I will, you better believe I will."

"The big money question, however, is will you actually succeed?"

That was a tough one for her to answer, so she sat back on the floor, holding her head in her hands.  "Uh, duh, Einstein, I won't; haven't from the get go, have I?"

Kurama turned back to smile at her again.  "Oh, I think you'll come up with something; it'll just take a little while."

"A long while, if you ask me," she answered, knowing that trying to get back at Kurama was really futile.  Changing the subject, she asked, "When's the last fight supposed to start, anyway?"

"Actually, if truth be told, I have no idea," he answered her.  "Hmm, perhaps we should go find out from someone."

"You're I n the Tournament, and you don't know?" Andrea shook her head, standing to her feet again.  "And I thought Kuwabara was crazy."

"Yes, well, if I hadn't been so distracted, then perhaps I would know the things I should."

"Want me to go with you?"

Kurama started walking, only to stop in the middle of the hallway and lowered his head.  "I would like that."

"All righty," she answered, closing her door and, making sure she had the key with her, walked to catch up to Kurama.  "Hey, Kurama, wait up."

Kurama stopped to wait for her.

She caught up with him.  "Okay, unless you want cobwebs in your hair, let's go."

"Just waiting for you," Kurama answered, continuing with her down the hall.

"Oh, I'm slow… okay…" She started teasing at Kurama.

"Just a little," he teased quietly back at her.

"Okay," she answered, letting him slide… just this once.  He's so going to get it later, she thought to herself.

Kurama only smiled to himself as they walked down the dark corridor.

Andrea brushed a hand through her long reddish-brown hair and winced.  "Ow."

Kurama stopped walking suddenly and looked at her.  "What's wrong?" he asked her in a concerned yet soft voice.

"Stupid tangles," she answered, looking at the few strands that had been pulled out.  "That last fight messed up my hair."

"Oh, is that all?" Kurama teased at her, chuckling.

"Yeah, I bet you get tons of tangles in your hair, Kurama," she teased him right back.

Meanwhile, Yusuke walked down the hallway, looking at Kurama and Andrea, who looked like they were in an argument.  "Man, you fight like a married couple," he said.

Andrea looked at Kurama, turning her head away.  She didn't really want to admit it, but she was definitely having these strange feelings for Kurama.  Why she hadn't told him yet, not even she had a good reason.  "We're not fighting, Yusuke; we're just discussing."

"Yes, arguing would sound a lot more unpleasant," Kurama added in a cool, neutral tone.

"Okay, but you two sure do discuss like one," Yusuke said over his shoulder as he walked by them.

Raising an eyebrow, she turned back to Kurama.  "What was that about?"

Kurama shrugged in response.  "I haven't the slightest clue."

"Like I was telling you before Yusuke interrupted, I bet you get a lot of tangles in your hair."

"Yes, but only just after rolling out of the bed."

While Andrea tried to stop herself from laughing, Kurama smiled and chuckled right along with her, smiling.

"I can't get that image out of my head," she said, trying to imagine Kurama's long red hair full of tangles.

"Yes, well, if you think that's funny, you should try to imagine Hiei's hair when he first wakes up in the morning," Kurama answered her.

At this point, Andrea's attempts of trying to stop laughing were non-existent.  Kurama had a slight hand on her shoulder, chuckling to himself the whole time Andrea's head landed on his shoulder.

As soon as his hand landed on her shoulder, Hiei stopped in front of them.  "Having a moment at my expense, are you?"

Andrea straightened to her full height and cleared her throat.  "Um, hi, Hiei," she answered him as a sweatdrop rolled down the back of her head.  "Um, nice day for a fight, huh?"

Hiei folded his arms tightly across his chest and frowned at them.  "Indeed, and the next one for us is in two hours."

"That was exactly why we were out here, right, Kurama?"

"Right," Kurama answered, nodding his head.

Andrea leaned her head near Kurama.  "He knows we're lying, right?"

Kurama nodded.  "I'm afraid so."

Andrea looked at him.  "We're dead."  Inwardly, she was shaking.  If it was one person on the Urameshi Team that scared her, it was Hiei without a doubt.  "We are so dead."

Kurama shook his head and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, patting it lightly.  "It's all right; he won't do anything."

((What does Kurama mean?  Does Hiei have to tell them something?  Will a certain secret be revealed, and if so, how will it affect the fight?  All that when "Anything, Anytime, Anywhere" returns with chapter 7!))

Cece:  Yay!  My first chapter in a while.  I might not be able to update like this; college, homework, and my daughterly duties take a lot outta me.

Yusuke:  So, be patient and review.

Kurama:  Thank you, Yusuke, for stealing my line.

Cece:  Oh, boy… anywho, R&R!


	7. Accepting the Truth

Accepting the Truth

By: Cece Williams

((Disclaimer: Don't own except for Andrea, so… [sticks tongue out] Sorry for the long update, school and homework can do that to people. Anywho, enjoy the chapter, though it's a tad long.))

"Hiei, what is it?" Andrea asked, looking at him quizzically.

He turned away from them. "Nothing," he answered. "I'll see you at the arena," he added before turning a corner.

Kurama and Andrea looked at each other quizzically. What did Hiei mean by that? There was no time to worry about it now; there was a final round for the guys to win. The team, with Andrea by the kitsune's side, left the hotel and made their way to the stadium.

The walk, in short, was quiet. Usually, Yusuke and Kuwabara would joke about how much butt they were going to kick, but even they were deathly silent. As Andrea looked up at Kurama, she saw a fierce look in his emerald gaze, which wasn't directed at her at all. The look stunned her; never in her travels with the Urameshi Team did she ever see Kurama's eyes look like that. Wonder what he's thinking about, a part of her was thinking.

Kurama was thinking, all right. Why am I having these feelings for her? he thought. I mean, she's funny and smart, but she's also attractive… He turned his eyes on Andrea, who was now looking straight ahead. Could the others be correct in saying that there are feelings between Andrea and myself?

A hand on his stopped his train of thought. "Kurama?"

He looked down… and noticed that Andrea was holding his hand.

"It's the fight, isn't it?" she asked him, blinking her blue eyes at him. "You're going to beat him, I know it."

Kurama loved her optimism before a fight, although last night, he had seen the worry in her eyes. Today, she looked better, her eyes weren't near bloodshot; they were perfectly clear. But there was something else in her blue eyes that he couldn't decipher. What was it? Shaking the thought out of his head, he nodded at her. "Your confidence in me is reassuring," he answered, smiling at her briefly.

"I'm glad I can reassure you," she answered, smiling back at him.

Meanwhile, Yusuke looked at Kuwabara. "Hey, you notice anything odd between those two?" he asked, pointing at Kurama and Andrea.

"Yeah, they're talking kind of low," Kuwabara answered.

"Just leave them alone," Hiei said, looking up at them with his crimson eyes.

"Why should I, shrimp?" Kuwabara asked, balling a fist and punching it into his open palm.

Hiei now glared at Kuwabara. "Unless you want me to kill you before the finals even start," he growled.

Kuwabara now decided to leave him alone.

Arena 

When they arrived at the ring, they were treated with consistent booing and jeering; they were used to that by now. Not only that, but their team was short one person. Andrea was about to step forward, until Kurama grabbed her arm above her wrist. "Kurama?"

Kurama looked down at her. "I'm not allowing you to enter that ring," he answered her.

"What are you talking about?" Andrea looked into his emerald eyes. "The team is down one, and if you guys don't have a fifth fighter, then I've got no choice."

Kurama's hold on her arm tightened slightly, a sign that he was serious about what he said. "You mean a great deal to me," he answered her. "And the last thing I wish to witness is your demise."

What Kurama said literally stunned her. She knew Kurama was protective of her, but not that much. All she could do was blink.

The look Kurama saw in her eyes wasn't just shock; it was also worry. "You shouldn't worry about me," he continued as he released her arm.

"But I am," she answered, burying her face in his chest while wrapping her arms around him.

Kurama gently grabbed her arms and pulled them from around him. "Everything will be fine," he answered her. "I promise." He turned her head up to face him. "I'm asking you for a favor."

Andrea nodded her head. "Anything," she said simply.

Kurama turned his gaze to the stands, where Botan, Yukina, Shizuru, Keiko, and George were sitting, and turned his emerald eyes back on Andrea. "This battle will be intense, so I need you to protect the girls," he answered her.

Andrea blinked. "But..."

"Please," he interrupted. He held his hands on her shoulders. "If you won't do it for yourself, then do it for me."

Andrea nodded her head. She said "anything" and "anything" meant "anything," although she didn't like it. "Okay," she said. "I'll do it."

Kurama released her shoulders and nodded. "Please, be careful," he said to her.

Andrea nodded as she raced out of the arena.

He watched as she left the arena and then turned back to hear a dark voice.

"So, Kurama, why are you protecting that human girl?"

Kurama glared harshly at the person in the ring, Karasu. "My reasons are none of your concern," he answered.

"I'm going to beat him so bad, his own mother wouldn't recognize him," Kuwabara said and was about to get in the ring when he heard a "No."

The other members looked at Kurama, who had now taken a step forward. "I will handle him," he answered, jumping into the ring.

Meanwhile, Andrea had made it to where the Urameshi Team Cheering Squad was. She sat next to Yukina, who looked up at Andrea and smiled warmly at her. "I'm glad you could make it, Andrea," she said.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," she answered. Although that kitsune woke me up at 6AM, she thought to herself.

"From the sound of things, it appears everyone in the stadium is a fan of the dark and gruesome Karasu," Koto said.

"What did you say?!"

A voice rang out, knocking Koto off of her chair.

"You couldn't pay me enough to cheer for that vampire wannabe weirdo!" Keiko shouted.

"I'm not rooting for a fruit basket!" Andrea shouted out. "I'd rather take Kurama's Rose Whip around the throat than root for him!"

"Don't forget your stretches, Koenma sir!" George shouted, waving a club in the air.

The girls looked at him strangely.

"Oh, I forgot this was Koenma's, so I'll just use it to scare people," George said. He waved it in the air. "Kurama! Kurama!"

While Andrea whistled at the kitsune, the other girls cheered for him.

Back in the ring, Juri, a fish demon who had become the announcer, started the fight.

Karasu looked at Kurama with a steely gaze. "I wonder why you would subject yourself into this," he said to him. "Could it be to protect that human girl you care about so much?"

Kurama's emerald green eyes narrowed, knowing it was a threat against her life. "Whether I protect her or not is none of your concern," he answered him. "You should be concerned about your life, or what's left of it."

Outside the ring, Kuwabara looked at Yusuke. "Hey, Urameshi," he said. "Whom are they talking about?"

Hiei had his hands in his pockets. "If you idiots haven't figured it out yet, who needs to tell you?" he asked them.

"You mean that hot looking girl that fox-boy was talking to?" Yusuke asked.

"She has a name, you know," Kuwabara retorted. "You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say that Kurama was about to propose or something."

"Before a fight?" Yusuke asked. "You stupid?"

"Is that a trick question?" Hiei asked them.

"What you say, short round?" Kuwabara looked at Hiei threateningly.

Hiei looked at him, glaring. "You heard me," he answered. "Is your brain smaller than your hearing?"

In the stands, however, Andrea was confused. "What are they talking about down there?" she asked.

Botan looked at the arguing group. "I think they're talking about a certain blue-eyed girl who's got Kurama by the heartstrings," she answered.

Andrea looked at her. "What did you just say?" she asked.

"Come on, admit it," Botan answered her, despite Shizuru trying to shut the blue-haired girl up. "You're in love with Kurama, aren't you?"

"What?!" Andrea was stunned, upset, and surprised all at once. "How could you say something so stupid as that?"

"Botan, maybe you should shut up," Shizuru finally told her.

"Good idea!" Andrea said, standing up. "I don't need to hear this!" With that, she stormed away angrily.

"Oh, dear," Yukina said, her crimson eyes looking at Andrea's retreating figure. "She's really mad."

"Botan, how could you say something like that to her?" Keiko asked, looked at the blue-haired girl. "That wasn't nice."

Shizuru knocked Botan upside her head and left after the offended girl. "Hey, Andrea, wait up!" she shouted after the girl.

"I hope she can find her," Yukina said. "She seemed highly upset."

"Don't worry; Shizuru can handle it," Keiko said, patting Yukina on the shoulder.

Running blindly down a hallway was Andrea, that is, until a hand grabbed her arm.

"Hey, it's only me," Shizuru's voice said from behind her.

Andrea whirled around, her blue eyes in the verge of tears. "What do you want?" she asked her. "To rub this in my face?"

"Now, why would I do that?" Shizuru asked her.

"What gave her the right to say something like that?" Andrea asked back. "It's none of her business."

"That's Botan; she's a bubblehead."

Andrea sat down on the floor, not answering. She was still upset with Botan, which was really obvious.

"Hey, don't let the ferry girl get you down. If you like someone, that's your business."

"That's the problem," Andrea finally answered. "It's the someone."

Shizuru sat next to her. "So, you got a secret love?" she asked her.

Andrea hugged her knees. "If you can call it that," she answered timidly.

"You're not the first person to have a crush on him. Though you might be the last."

Andrea laid her head on her knees. "Huh?"

"You haven't seen it, have you?"

"Seen what?" Andrea dried her eyes. "Kurama's just protective, that's all."

Shizuru smiled at her. "You'll have to ask him, and keep pestering him until he answers."

"What are you talking about?"

Shizuru patted the girl's shoulder. "You'll see. Ready to watch the boys kick butt?"

Andrea still looked perturbed. "I don't even want to see that airhead."

"I'll keep Botan from making her bad comments, but I think that Kurama's gonna need all our support in this fight, especially from you."

Andrea nodded, knowing that she was right. "Sure."

Shizuru stood up and wrapped her arm around Andrea's shoulder. "You'll be okay."

"Do me a favor."

"Sure."

"The next time she says anything like that, tell her I got pictures of her and Koenma together."

Shizuru laughed. "Sure, I would love to!"

"Don't tell her I got the pictures here with me."

"Sure, I'll do that."

With that, both girls walked back to their seats, where Andrea shot a fierce glare at Botan before sitting back next to Yukina, who looked a little worried. "Are you feeling any better now?"

"A little," Andrea answered, although her voice was very low.

"Listen, what Botan said earlier, she didn't mean it," Keiko said, trying to get the angered girl to cheer up.

Andrea didn't hear her; she already had something to think about… or someone…

Back in the ring, Karasu kept trying to hit Kurama, only to have Kurama dodge his attack. His violet eyes watched the kitsune as he continued to dodge. "It's a shame things couldn't be different between us," he said in a low tone. "But it doesn't really matter; even things that seem ideal always turn sour, I'm just speeding the process." He slashed out at Kurama again, and once again, Kurama dodged. "I've found there's no greater rush than taking the life of someone you care for."

At that line, Kurama's eyebrows narrowed again. It's a good thing I sent Andrea to the other girls; down here at ringside is too dangerous, he thought.

"The intimacy between the murderer and victim is unparalleled, witnessing their soul ripped apart from its body." As Karasu was about to attack Kurama from the air, the kitsune had dodged yet again.

However, Kurama felt a stinging sensation in his left arm. It felt like someone had taken a lighter and burned the flesh from his arm.

"It's not necessary to touch you," Karasu said, smiling through the mask. "It's just one of the perks."

Kurama, this time, felt a burning sensation in his right thigh. Things weren't looking good for him… even when another bomb, this time shaped like several sticks of dynamite, came at him. As Kurama blocked, a large area was red while Karasu landed on this feet.

"He got him," Keiko said from the stands.

"No, that's not possible," Andrea said, a hand covering her mouth. "Kurama's not dead, Keiko. He can't be."

Karasu looked at his hand; a single red rose was thrown through his hand. "Very amusing," he said, pulling the rose off and crushing it.

As soon as he finished his sentence, a hush fell over the stadium, where flashes of black lightning struck at various places, but nowhere near the girls or the team. As the smoke cleared, a tall figure in white with a silver fox tail, ears, and hair stood where Kurama once stood.

"Youko…" was all Andrea could say, her blue eyes in half surprise, half relief.

/Don't worry; Shuichi's safe, / Youko answered her mentally. /Shuichi wouldn't have survived that blast if I weren't here. /

Andrea made a mental note to thank Youko after all of this was over. After all, he saved Kurama earlier when he fought UraUrashima. That was the first time she saw Youko. Knowing that Youko probably had something up his sleeve, she smiled.

Back in the ring, Karasu sent out a literal troop of bombs with one eye and bat wings called Trace Eyes out at Youko.

Youko dodged with ease and elegance, as can be expected from a fox demon. He landed on his feet, looking at Karasu.

"Oh, it seems you're trapped," Karasu said to him. "What's a poor boy to do?" The Trace Eyes were getting closer.

Youko smiled. "I thought you knew better than to corner an animal like a fox, Karasu," he said. "We have a tendency to show our teeth." And as soon as he finished speaking, his aura appeared suddenly and destroyed all of the bombs, leaving only a very large plant near him.

Karasu, in his own way, looked unimpressed with the Ojigi plant literally aimed at him. As the different vines started chasing him, he created one bomb after another, trying to get rid of the plant.

Youko only smiled. "It also responds to aggression, so the more you attack it, the more vicious it becomes," he said, making the plant chase Karasu around even more. "How does it feel to be the one pursued?" The plant grew more hostile as it wrapped its leaves around Karasu.

The pressure made Karasu lose his mask, in which a look of pain appeared on his face, as his mask fell lifelessly to the ground.

"You'll have to find a smart way to kill it, or else…" Youko smirked, making a gun by using his thumb and index fingers and putting the index at his head. It was the same threat used earlier. "Bang."

As if on command, the plants wrapped their leaves around Karasu, one plant on top of another. Soon, there was a ball of leaves in the air. The smirk on Youko's face remained as he started to walk offstage.

From the stands, the girls were smiling in relief. "I can't believe it, Kurama won," Keiko said.

"I love my baby bro and all, but it's nice to see someone not embarrass himself," Shizuru added.

Andrea nodded in agreement to both statements.

It seemed like he had won the match when suddenly the ball of leaves exploded, sending the damaged vegetation around the ring.

Outside the ring, the rest of the team was stunned, but they weren't the only ones. In the stands, Andrea held a hand to her mouth again, this time in shock. "That can't be," she said.

Back in the ring, as Karasu took in air, his raven black hair turned into a yellowish blond.

Outside the ring, Kuwabara looked at Hiei. "What's the deal?"

Hiei only had a look of pure seriousness on his face. "It's a sign that he's internalizing his energy, making him one giant explosive," he answered.

"Are you serious?" Yusuke asked.

"Of course I am," Hiei answered. "He's about to detonate. If you're as smart as you think you are, you'll take cover now."

Back inside the ring, Karasu, now with blond hair, jumped into the air, making an energy ball around him. Youko looked up as Karasu aimed himself at him. "This is the end, kitsune," Karasu threatened as he launched himself at Youko, creating an explosion, which knocked the rest of the team away.

In the stands, all of the girls had shocked looks on their faces that turned to relief at the sight that the other four were okay. Andrea scanned the group, frantically searching for... "Oh, my God; where's Kurama?" she asked worriedly. As her blue eyes looked at a slab of stone move and fall over, her eyes grew to relief and worry. Kurama was all right, but now he was in his human form.

Outside the ring, the rest of the team grew worried about this. "The potion wore off!" Yusuke said in shock. "Now Kurama's gonna have to wing it."

As Kurama stood to his feet, he noticed Karasu getting closer to him and looked up at him. What's going on? Kurama thought to himself. That potion was supposed to last longer than this, but it's as if it's weakening me every time I use it.

"Instead of thinking, why not start to pray?"

Kurama looked up to see a smiling Karasu.

"You know, Kurama, that girl of yours is very stunning," Karasu said, looking very quickly at Andrea and then turning his gaze back on Kurama.

Although Kurama was in a little pain, he glared at Karasu with deep eyebrows and a threatening look in his emerald colored eyes. "If you harm one hair on her head…" he threatened.

"Oh, don't worry, Kurama," Karasu answered. Now that the mask was off, Karasu smiled evilly. "She won't be the only one to die."

Kurama jumped into the ring again, obviously perturbed. This time, Kurama attacked Karasu, but the same outcome came; no dice. Then, Kurama tried one of the Death Seeds and hit Karasu with it. As he landed on his feet, he silently hoped that it worked.

Much to Karasu's joy and Kurama's disappointment, it didn't, as Karasu calmly took the seed out of his chest. "You really thought this would work." He showed the seed at him. "It's called tact, Kurama; you should learn to use it." The seed exploded, making a bomb grab Kurama's left leg tightly. "That's called my Mad Bomb."

Kurama's eyes widened… and Andrea's as well, from the stands.

The bomb exploded, tearing a horrendous injury to his leg. As Kurama screamed in pain, Andrea screamed inwardly, as if feeling his pain.

It wasn't so much as the pain that Kurama was feeling that made her scream to herself; it was the thoughts running through her head. She watched as Kurama stood back up, shakily. Let him be okay, she thought to herself.

From the sidelines, Yusuke saw something that he had to warn the already injured Kurama. "Kurama, don't move! You're surrounded by bombs!"

Kurama shifted his eyes around him; green balls were glowing and aimed at him.

Karasu stepped ever so slowly towards the injured kitsune. "You're tired, you're weak, you're powerless, and you're pathetic."

Kurama's eyebrows narrowed at the statement but didn't answer.

"Yet you have a masochistic streak that wants indulging." Karasu extended his hand, his fingers controlling the bombs. "So, here goes."

A first wave of bombs hit Kurama, making him cry out in pain and sink to his knees. From the blood he lost so far, his breathing was getting more and more tired.

From the stands, a shocked and terrified Andrea held her hands over her mouth, tears forming in her blue eyes.

Keiko turned her head away. "I can't watch him suffer like this!" she said.

Taking that as a distraction, Andrea left the stands, her blue eyes now letting go of the enclosed tears.

Oblivious to Andrea's sudden exit, Shizuru looked at the ring. "Karasu's such a bastard," she said. "He's clearly playing with him now. I just wish he could get this over with."

Yukina looked at her side and saw that Andrea wasn't there. "Everyone, where's Andrea?" she asked worriedly.

Racing down a hall, Andrea said to herself, "Kurama, now I understand."

(What did Andrea mean by that? Where is she running to, and will Kurama win the fight and survive? That's in the next chapter of "Anything, Anytime, Anywhere.")


	8. So Far Away, Yet So Near

So Far Away, Yet So Near

By: Cece Williams

((Disclaimer: Don't own, can't sue, and boo hoo….))

Cece: Okay, another chapter coming up!

Kurama: You sound like a pizza delivery boy.

Cece: Watch it, kitsune.

(Kori laughs)

Hiei: R&R at the end.

Kori: Hiei-kun! (hugs him)

Hiei: Help!

Cece: Kori helped me with the title… and she also tries to keep two certain youkais under control… (looks at Kurama and Hiei)

Kurama: ;;;; I have no idea what you're implying, Cece.

Cece: Sure I do… remember that episode where you tore your shirt open…

Kurama: (covers her mouth) Heh heh… let's just start the chapter…

"Kurama, now I understand…" Running as fast as her legs could carry her, Andrea ran from her seat in the stands down a hallway. "I understand what you meant…" Her mind flashed back to a particular moment in time…

/ Start Flashback /

Kurama knelt down next to Andrea and held her shoulders gently. "You mustn't blame yourself, Andrea," he answered her. He lowered his head, letting his long red bangs cover his eyes. "Even if you hadn't gotten involved, Karasu would still have come after you. All it would take was one glance at the way I acted with you to see that my feelings for you are different than what I feel towards my other friends."

"I know that..." Andrea answered, but stopped when she heard his last statement. "How different?"

Kurama looked up at her, and then looked away. "I don't know, but it's different," he answered her.

/ End Flashback /

Andrea literally stopped in her tracks. "'It's different'," she said to herself. She took off running again, this time a purpose was in her steps. /Hang in there, Kurama,/ she thought to herself. /I'm coming./

Back in the stands, Yukina looked at her side and noticed that the seat that Andrea sat in was still vacant. "She's been gone a long time…"

"Don't worry," Shizuru said to her. "She's a tough girl; she can take care of herself."

"Still, I'm worried about her," Keiko answered. "The arena's not the safest place to be."

In all actuality, Shizuru wasn't all too concerned about her. "Remember, she invented the 'kick the demon between the legs' routine."

"I know. I wish she wasn't so…"

"Smart?"

"Spontaneous," Keiko answered. "She's doing things without thinking."

"Well, she sounds like a certain guy in your life, huh, Keiko?"

Keiko only blushed.

Shizuru smirked. "So, you _do_ love Yusuke."

"Shizuru!" Keiko's blush deepened.

"Well…"

"Let's just watch the fight, okay?" Keiko asked her, desperately trying to hide the blush.

"All right," Shizuru answered. Still, the notion in her mind wasn't going away. The love bug had bitten two girls, and both of them didn't even know it.

One of the love bug-bitten girls, however, was heading straight for the action. Andrea was tired of sitting on the sidelines, watching Kurama get hurt for possibly no reason at all. "I just hope I'm not too late," she said to herself, stopping at the entrance to the ringside area. The vision of a certain redhead brought her legs back into action again. "Kurama…" She started to run up to the ring again.

Koenma heard footsteps heading in his direction and ran to stop the running girl in her tracks. "Andrea, you can't go in there!" he told her, desperate to keep her back.

Andrea was now struggling in his hold. "Koenma, let me go!" she said to him, trying to break free so she could reach the ring.

Koenma now had a hold on her, and he wasn't letting her go. "Andrea, if you go in there, we'll be disqualified!" He tried to reason with the worried girl.

"And let Kurama die?" Andrea turned to face the Reikai Prince, tears filling her blue eyes and falling down her cheeks. She looked at the ring, feeling several tears falling from her eyes but not brushing them away. "I've lost too many people I've ever loved in my life; I'm not losing Kurama now, either!"

At those words, Yusuke and Kuwabara turned and looked at Andrea. "Think she finally admitted it?" Kuwabara asked Yusuke.

Yusuke shrugged. "Probably; I just hope fox-boy heard that."

Hiei only said nothing and turned his gaze back to the ring.

"Kurama will be fine!" Koenma protested, trying to reason with her. In truth, it wasn't as easy as it looked. "Please, Andrea!"

"Are you sure about that?!" Andrea looked at Koenma, an extremely upset look on her young face. "Because I don't see fruit boy on the floor, do you?"

Koenma was definitely having a hard time with Andrea, who was still adamant about what she was about to do. "You're not being reasonable!"

Andrea brought her hands to her face and started breathing, trying to calm herself down as she turned away from him. "There's not a damn thing I can do, is there?" she asked. She looked up at Koenma, the tears continuing to fall. "There's got to be something."

"I'm really sorry, Andrea, but there's nothing I can do."

In her mind, Andrea relayed the fight thus far into her thoughts. /Kurama, please tell me… this place isn't real…/ She shook her head. /No, we're really at school, where you once told me I wasn't as helpless as I thought. You still beat me on the test scores, which isn't really a surprise to me. Why you bothered to tutor me, I'll never know./ She remembered when the Mad Bomb exploded on his leg, then the first wave of bombs that exploded around him. /Kurama… please take me from this nightmare…/

Koenma noticed that Andrea hadn't answered him, so he turned her head away from the fight. "I'm sorry, Andrea; I'm sorry that I can't do anything to put a stop to this. But if I could, you know I would."

"Kurama's getting hurt out there…" Andrea started but stopped when she was about to go into a catatonic state.

The second thing that Koenma noticed was that Andrea's voice had now gotten too soft. He looked at her as her voice dropped. "Andrea?" he asked her, shaking her shoulder, only to get no response. "Andrea! Snap out of it!"

Andrea remained not answering as her blue eyes showed signs of cloudiness. Her vision was getting rather blurry. The voices she heard were warbled and distorted as if aliens abducted her.

"I hope she's not going to hate me for this afterwards," Koenma answered before raising his hand and smacking Andrea in the face.

The force caused her to gasp in shock more than disbelief and her head to jerk in one direction, her long hair following the force. Andrea blinked and looked up, only to have her hand on her face. "What was that for?"

"To snap you back to reality!" Koenma answered, almost as concerning as Kurama would've answered. "Kurama's smarter than what Karasu believes. He'll pull through."

Andrea looked at the ring again thinking, /I'm here now, Kurama, and I'm not leaving./

Back in the ring, Karasu looked at the kitsune, who literally growled at him. "I might not always get to keep you, but I'll have the look of your face to give me comfort."

Kurama stood back to his feet, shakily at first, but even though he was injured, he managed to keep his calm look. Inwardly, however, was a different matter. /You couldn't have been more wrong about my so-called 'lack of tact', Karasu, thinking that mark on your chest is only a harmless scratch. The smell of your wound so close to your heart should be more than enough for a bloodthirsty plant. You may not think I can summon another plant, but you will soon find that you are wrong there as well. I can summon once more, in exchange for my life./ At that, his emerald eyes narrowed.

From the sidelines, Andrea held a hand to her heart. /Are you out of your mind?/ she asked him mentally.

Back inside the ring, Karasu directed the bombs to hit Kurama, whom with every bomb hitting him, it felt like a thousand daggers tearing at his flesh, ripping into him. Kurama cried out in pain again, this time as it hurt more as some of the bombs hit him in previously injured places. Finally, the standing kitsune fell, closed his emerald colored eyes, and hit the ring.

As Kurama hit the ring, a stunned look filled the team's features. The only difference was that Andrea was more than stunned; she was scared. Her eyes grew wide. "Come on, Kurama! Get up!" she screamed to the down kitsune. As Juri started the ten count, Andrea's plea grew more desperate. "Kurama! Please, get up! You can't lose now!"

At the eight count, Kurama pushed himself up to his hands and knees, blood still permeating from his injuries.

"You should have stayed down, Kurama," Karasu said, giving a smirk over at Andrea before looking back at Kurama. "But I guess that's not your style." A blast of green energy shot out towards Kurama.

As the energy blast came closer to Kurama, the kitsune looked at Karasu, thinking only one thing: /I may die, but at least I can call it a draw./ The blood-sucking plant that was formed out of Kurama's own energy flew at Karasu… and attached itself to him.

Andrea, from the sidelines, screamed at him mentally. /Kurama! Please, don't do this!/

/I'm sorry, Andrea; it's the only way to keep you safe…/ With that, Kurama fell and hit the ring again… and didn't get back up.

At this point, Andrea kept her eyes on the kitsune on the ring floor and felt as if her whole world had shattered, like a rock hitting a stained-glass window of a church and rendering it unable to be repaired. "No… he can't be…" The tears, once again, fell from her eyes, but they fell as if she were filling a river. "No, not Kurama… How can God be so cruel?" Her body started shaking as she screamed only one word… "KURAMA!"

((Is Kurama really dead? Will Andrea try to save him? And what's the ruling on the fight? All in the next chapter of "Anything, Anytime, Anywhere!"))

Kurama: One more chapter?

Cece: Yeah, but I can't really call it that.

Kurama: Why?

Cece: It's a surprise.

Yusuke: You mean that Kurama… (gets FWAPed)

Cece: You moron! It's called "surprise" for a reason!

Kori: R&R, you guys!


	9. Divine Intervention

Divine Intervention

By: Cece Williams

((Disclaimer: Already said it so many times, it gets boring.))

Cece: Sadly, this is my last chapter…

Kurama: It's been a good run.

Cece: … before the sequel!

(All except Cece anime faint)

Yusuke: Sequel?

Kori: Oh, yeah. It's going to be great, too!

Cece: Yeah! So keep an eye out!

Of all the things she had to witness in her life, Andrea never wanted to witness the death of the only guy to really care about her. Her blue eyes now had more tears in them than her eyes could handle and they fell down her face. "How can God be so cruel?" she said. She started to make another mad dash to the ring; only this time, no one stopped her.

From the stands, the others saw the goings-on. "Kurama, please get up!" Botan said out loud.

"He isn't moving; do you think he's dead?" Yukina asked them, worry etched in every corner of her voice.

"Of course he's not! He can't be!"

"Just face it, Botan," Shizuru said, a repressed sadness in her voice. "Kurama sacrificed himself to kill Karasu."

"Please wake up!" Keiko said from the stands.

In the ring, Andrea knelt next to the kitsune and held Kurama's limp form in her arms, the tears falling from her eyes. "Kurama, you can't leave me," she sobbed into his shoulder.

/Somewhere in Time Space/

Kurama woke up, but he suddenly realized that where he was at was definitely not the stadium. He looked around with his emerald gaze. "Where am I?" he asked out loud.

"About time you woke up. You've been out for ten minutes, Spirit Time anyway."

Kurama turned around and now was face to face with a woman who looked about six years older than Andrea. She wore a lavender kimono down to her feet, with pink water lilies embroidered on the satiny fabric, and her brown hair was in a topknot. "Spirit Time?" Kurama asked in confusion, only to have the answer slap him in the face. "You mean I'm…"

The woman nodded her head. "Yes, you are," she answered. "You're dead."

The answer really didn't shock Kurama all that much. "I suppose I had to do what was best for Andrea's sake," he answered.

"Seems that you care about Andrea so much, you were willing to give your own life for her," the woman replied.

Kurama nodded. "Yes, I would," he answered her. Before he could continue, he heard a girl crying. In a way, it sounded familiar, but he couldn't place it. "Someone's crying."

"Your hearing's still good," the lavender-clad woman replied, smiling. "That would be my little Andrea."

Kurama now had a very good look at the woman. Oddly enough, she looked like an older version of Andrea. Now, it made sense on which she was. "'My little Andrea'…" As far as he knew, the only people who would call their children that would be the parents, but he only saw one. "You mean you're her mother?"

The woman nodded. "Yes, I am," she answered, bowing out of respect to Kurama. "My name is Lisa Stone."

Kurama bowed himself out of respect. "Was I supposed to expire so quickly?" he asked her.

Andrea's mother shook her head. "No, in fact, you weren't meant to die right now; you were meant to stay alive."

"I told Andrea that I thought it was for the best, but that's all I really remember, other than Andrea crying," Kurama answered her.

"Andrea's quite worried about you," her mother answered back.

Kurama turned his emerald colored eyes to a hallway with doors on each wall. "What exactly are these doors for?" he asked her.

The girl's mother looked at the doors. "These doors take you out of the spiritual world and into the physical world." She stood next to one of the doors. "To go back to the physical world, just enter the door."

From beyond the door, Kurama could hear Andrea crying for him to come back. "I must be worrying her," he said, his voice growing softer.

"She cares for you, Kurama," her mother said, nodding her head in agreement with Kurama's statement about worrying Andrea.

Another thought entered his mind. "I also remember telling Andrea that my feelings for her were different than those of my friends…" He stopped in mid-thought, the realization coming out of his mouth. His eyes widened in surprise.

"Only the heart knows the truth, which sometimes comes out too late."

Remembering the words he had just uttered only a minute ago, Kurama mentally kicked himself. "Of course! Why didn't I sense it sooner?"

"You still have a choice," Andrea's mother answered him.

In his soul's eye, Kurama tried to picture what would happen with his decision.

First, he thought about what if he went ahead and died. He saw a neurotic Andrea sitting at home, blaming herself for his death. He saw then that the poor girl had literally given up on everything she had believed in, but the next part was something that stunned him. She took a shot glass, filled it with gin, and drank it down. Kurama couldn't believe what his soul's eye had taken in.

Then, he thought about what would happen if he went back to the living. Andrea might yell at him for a while, but he knew she was worried about him. Maybe all of the things that were thought about being said would finally be revealed.

Kurama opened his mental eyes. He knew his decision would impact on everyone, especially those who were the closest to him. "I can't do that to her."

"You must make that decision for yourself."

Kurama lowered his head slightly. "I just don't wish for Andrea to suffer any more than she has already," he answered. He looked back up at her mother. "She's already lost too many people she cares about, including her mother."

Lisa nodded her head; she already knew of the losses her daughter had suffered. "Yes, Andrea has lost a lot of people," she replied. "She believes herself to be weak, but it's her friends that give her strength. Remind her of that."

Kurama nodded. "All right; I'm ready to go back," he answered, reaching for the doorknob to take him back.

"Kurama?"

He turned his head back to face Lisa. "Yes, ma'am?"

"When you go back, I want you to do me a favor."

"All right."

Lisa gave Kurama a kiss on the cheek and looked at him. "Give that to Andrea, okay?"

"Okay."

"And tell her I love her," Lisa said to him. "Go now."

Nodding, Kurama opened the door and stepped in.

/Back at the Ring/

Andrea couldn't believe it; she now lost the one guy she loved. She held onto him, one hand on the back of his head while her other arm draped across his shoulder blades. "Come on, Kurama, you can't leave me," she pleaded. She sniffled; she thought her bad jokes would bring him back. "I need someone to hold me and tell me that everything will be okay. That and be the father of my kids."

What Andrea didn't notice was that Kurama's hand twitched.

"I should've told you sooner how I felt about you," Andrea continued. "I should've told you that I… I love you."

"It's never too late to reveal your true feelings."

At first, Andrea thought she was hearing things, but as the voice began to register in her brain, it didn't take her a second to know who it was. She lifted her head up and looked at Kurama, whose emerald green eyes were open. "Kurama… you're alive!" she said, hugging the kitsune in her arms.

"Yes, and air is a necessity, Andrea," he answered her, wincing from the embrace and also because of his injuries.

Andrea let go of Kurama, who sat up on the ring floor on his own. She had tears falling from her eyes. "Sorry."

Kurama dried her eyes with his hand. "There's no need to cry; as you can see, I'm alive," he answered her.

"I thought you were dead, and that I was too late…"

"Yes, and no."

"You mean you did…"

"Yes and no," Kurama repeated, not even sounding agitated.

"I don't understand."

Kurama looked at her, a gentle look in his tired eyes. "I did leave my body, but I was at The Door of Death," he explained to her. "I decided to come back."

"The Door of Death?" Andrea echoed, unable to believe it.

"Yes," he answered her. "But it was not my time."

"Did you see anyone?"

"Yes, in fact I did; I met someone you should be very familiar with, Andrea."

"There were so many… so many people I've lost…" Andrea sniffled. "You mean my mom?"

Kurama nodded his head at her. "Yes," he answered her. "She encountered me to tell me something. For that, I am grateful to her."

"What is it?"

"That there is always a reason to live," he answered her. "And also to tell someone the truth before it becomes too late."

"I can think of the reason, your mom."

Kurama nodded. "That and you as well."

Andrea looked down at the ring floor. "Me?"

Kurama nodded again. "And I have a message from her."

"What's that?"

Without saying a word, Kurama pecked her on the cheek lightly.

Andrea's cheeks tinged with an embarrassed shade of pink. "Are you sure that was from Mom or you?" she asked him.

Kurama only smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "That and that she said she loves you."

"She knows I love her, too, right?"

"Something tells me she's always known that."

Andrea started giggling suddenly.

Kurama looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"You've never heard of PDA, have you?"

"Now, why would you say that?"

Andrea looked around the stadium and then looked back at Kurama. "Because we're in a stadium, with a lot of people… and they're looking at us kinda weird."

Kurama stood to his feet, blushing madly almost to the color of his hair. "Sorry."

Andrea only went into a giggling fit.

Juri looked at the couple and raised an eyebrow. Turning to the crowd, she said, "And the official announcement says… the winner of the match is Karasu!"

Andrea looked at Juri with intense blue eyes. "What in the hell?"

Kurama only remained silent.

Andrea turned her eyes back onto Kurama. "Come on, please tell me she's lying," she said to him, mentally hoping that it was a lie.

Kurama shook his head at her. "No, she's telling the truth."

"What?" She was stunned.

"I did stay down longer than ten counts," Kurama explained to her.

Andrea shook her head, not believing what she had just heard. She couldn't and wouldn't believe it. "That doesn't matter; Karasu's dead, that's all that should matter."

"Yes, that's all that matters," Kurama agreed before he started to limp off of the ring.

Andrea wrapped an arm around his waist and helped him off the ring. "Why can't they see that? I mean, it's obvious you killed him before the ten count was over."

"Evidently, the committee didn't see it through your perspective."

"You still won, Kurama!" Andrea pressed. "How can you not; I counted how long you stayed down!"

As much as he loved her optimism, Kurama had to disagree. "But you can't go against the ruling, Andrea," he said to her in a calm tone.

"Screw the committee!" Andrea said to him, her blue eyes still adamant about her line of thinking. "I'll shove my foot up their…" 1

"Andrea…" Kurama interrupted her.

"And another thing, why did my mom visit you?" Andrea seemed to calm down a little from her ranting. "What reason could she possibly see you when you were on the brink of death?"

"In truth, she told me a lot of things, but there was something she wanted you to remember," Kurama answered her.

"What was that?"

Kurama held onto her shoulders lightly. "Your friends give you strength. Just remember that we're always here for you."

As much as she loved her mother, the riddle only made her more confused. "What did she mean by that?"

Kurama smiled down at her. "Looks can be deceiving; you're not as weak as you say you are," he answered her. "You have a big heart, and it's in the right place."

Andrea looked up at him. "Really? I do?" Her blue eyes seemed to glitter, not with tears, but as if stars had been imprinted into her eyes, even though it wasn't nightfall.

Kurama nodded his head, smiling. "Yes, you do," he answered. "And that makes you stronger, Andrea."

With a slight blush creeping onto her face, Andrea lowered her head. /My friends give me strength?/ Andrea thought to herself. /Heh, funny; I always felt more confident with them around./

Kurama lightly kissed her on the forehead. "I'm telling the truth."

"Kurama, I believe you." She smiled at him.

/On the Boat, Headed for Home/

Andrea leaned on the railing, looking out at the sunset and sighed. She was oblivious to hear someone walk up beside her.

"What seems to be troubling you?"

Andrea turned around, startled. "Oh! Kurama, you startled me."

"I'm sorry," Kurama apologized. "But something's troubling you."

"Yeah, the Tournament's over. I was just thinking about the future."

"The future?" Kurama looked at her. "How do you mean?"

"You know, what we're gonna do, what our lives will be like," Andrea answered him. "Ever think about that, Kurama?"

"Yes."

"What do you see?"

"Other than graduating high school, who knows?"

"Yeah, no one knows what their future's gonna be, unless you're a psychic," she answered.

"Which I can assure you I am not," Kurama said to her. "But it doesn't take a genius to figure out that something's wrong." His emerald green eyes looked at her, worry etching into the green orbs. "Would you care to tell me?"

"It's hard to say."

"I promise if you tell me, you'll feel better."

Andrea looked back to the water. "I... I have to leave soon."

Kurama looked at her, surprise slowly filling his eyes. "Leave soon? Where are you going?"

"Home… in Orlando," Andrea answered. Her eyes now showed the sadness she had been trying to hide since Kurama came back.

"How long will you be away?"

Andrea shrugged. "I don't know; maybe a year or two."

Kurama looked at the sky; he felt the sadness that Andrea was going through. "I see."

"I don't want to go, but I have to. I'm sorry."

Kurama looked back at Andrea. He didn't want her to leave, either, but she didn't have a choice in the matter. He nodded and turned her to face him. "As long as you can take care of yourself, Andrea."

"Hey! I can take care of myself!" Andrea said in mock-protest. "Just as long as you do the same, Kurama."

Kurama smiled. "Naturally." With that, he gently kissed her on the forehead again.

/At the Airport, Several Days Later/

Andrea stood with Kurama in the airport, where Andrea was waiting for her flight. Unlike most girls, Andrea only carried one suitcase and her bookbag.

"So, this is goodbye for now?" Kurama asked her. He was wearing his school uniform, as he came from school to see her off.

Andrea, who was wearing a light pink cardigan and a Hawaiian-tie skirt with black sandals, looked down at the floor as she nodded. "Yeah."

"You'll write?"

Andrea nodded her head. "Of course," she answered. "What about you?"

"You know I'll write you," Kurama answered her.

"But what about the others?" Andrea asked Kurama. "You know how Yusuke is." She attempted an imitation of Yusuke. " 'Fox-boy, that's the tenth letter you wrote her this week!' "

Kurama shrugged. "I'll handle them," he answered. "Oh, and Andrea? Your Yusuke needs work."

Inwardly, Andrea chuckled, but outwardly, she was still sad. "I just don't want to leave yet, Shuichi." She was careful to say his human name so the people around wouldn't know that the "perfect" Shuichi Minamino wasn't so perfect after all.

"I know, but you have to return to your birthplace, you know," Kurama answered her. "And goodbye is not forever; it's only a period of time."

"But what about the cases and all that?" Andrea looked at him; worry etching into her blue eyes. "I mean, who's going to take over?"

"If we need help, Koenma will ask Botan to help," Kurama answered.

"This is all so stupid," Andrea said, mentally kicking her in the head. "I mean, you almost left me, and now I'm leaving you." She let a few tears fall from her eyes. "I feel like I'm punching you in the face or something for doing this."

"You'll never really leave us," Kurama answered her. "You'll be back someday."

"But how soon is that?" The tears fell slowly from her eyes.

"I just have a feeling," Kurama said, reaching into the bag he had at his side.

"A feeling?" Andrea looked a little confused.

"I never doubt my feelings," Kurama answered her, pulling out a bouquet of red and white roses with zinnias. 2

The sight of the flowers he gave her made her smile, but also blush. "Oh, my God," she said, taking the flowers. "They're gorgeous."

"Of course they are." And with Kurama being a fox demon, he knew.

The flowers did look beautiful. "But I don't have a vase for them," she said.

Kurama only chuckled, but answered her in a low voice. "I placed some youki in them so they'll stay fresh for a while."

"I don't know what to say…"

"You don't have to say anything, just that you'll write."

"Of course I'll write," Andrea answered him. "Just as long as you don't let Yusuke write anything."

"Sure."

The PA system interrupted their conversation. "Flight number 575 to Orlando is now boarding. I repeat, flight 575 is now boarding."

Andrea looked up at Kurama. "Well…"

Kurama looked down at her. "This is goodbye," he finished for her.

Trying to remember some of her Japanese, she said, "Kitto sayonara wa piriodo ja nai sa. Eien no saka wo nobotte yukeba, kimi to mata aeru." 3

Kurama smiled and countered with a phrase of his own. "Kyou no sayonara wa mirai no hajimari. Kokoro nara ore wa soba ni iru sa." 4

"Oh, there's something I want to give you," Andrea said, digging into her purse and pulling out an angel pendant with a chain.

Kurama raised an eyebrow. "What's this for?"

Andrea clasped the necklace around his neck. "Who knows?" She whispered in his ear. "When you're fighting, you'll know I'm with you."

Kurama smiled again. "Same with me with your hardships."

The PA, once again, interrupted. "Last call for flight 575. Repeat, last call for 575."

Andrea looked at Kurama again. "Well, that's my flight." She kissed Kurama on the lips lightly. "Aishiteru 5, Shuichi-kun! Ja ne!" she said as she waved at Kurama while catching her flight.

"Ja!" Kurama said, waving at the departing girl.

Andrea got on the plane and as she sat down, she heard a clink in her purse. "Huh?" she asked, digging into it and taking out a small box. As she opened it, she saw a gold rose pendant in her hand. "Oh, my God…" As she fingered the pendant, she whispered, "Aishiteru… Kurama."

Cece: Okay, things to know about this chapter:

1. I think we know what Andrea was about to say.

2. In the language of flowers, red and white roses together are "unity" and that zinnias are for "affection and remembrance."

3. What Andrea said to Kurama was from "Sayonara wa Mirai no Hajimari." You should get the song if you can. Here's what her line translated to: "Surely a goodbye is not a period. If I go on and climb the everlasting hill, I shall meet you again."

4. What Kurama told Andrea was also from the same song. Here's the translation of that part: "Today's goodbye is the beginning of tomorrow. If in my mind, I shall be beside you."

5. Aishiteru means, "I love you."

Yusuke: So, that's it?

Cece: Yeah, but keep your eyes out for the sequel. Buh-bye!


End file.
